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CNN Sunday Morning
Profile of Pianist Lang Lang
Aired June 16, 2002 - 08:36 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: If you've seen our FACES OF THE WEEK segment on Sunday mornings, you know we tend to focus on faces that are not familiar. Our faces this week has already been discovered by a small segment of music lovers, but to the rest of the world he's a secret.
This morning, we're letting out that secret. Our reporter, CNN's Michael Schroder (ph) and our face of the week -- who has spent the last couple of days celebrating his 20th birthday is...
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL SCHRODER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His name is Lang Lang. And Lang Lang is about to catch fire. Some major critics and conductors believe Lang Lang may very well be the most talented pianist of his generation.
On this night, he's playing one of the most difficult pieces in a classical repertoire -- Prokofiev's Piano Concerto Number Three. Here's music critic, Barbara Jepson.
BARBARA JEPSON, MUSIC CRITIC, WALL STREET JOURNAL: I have never seen anyone have so much fun playing the Prokofiev third. He has a formidable technique. He didn't so much count out the chords, as dive bomb them with pinpoint accuracy. What sets Lang Lang apart is his extraordinary ability to quickly connect with an audience.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You taught me how to passionately listen to music for the first time. Thank you.
LANG LANG, PIANIST: When you're getting famous or you get more audience, so you would play in this kind of hall.
SCHRODER: A day before opening night I met up with Lang Lang as he prepared for his first rehearsal of the Prokofiev third with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
SCHRODER (on camera): Tell us a little bit about the piece you're going to be playing tomorrow night. And it's Prokofiev.
LANG: In the beginning, it is a beautiful melody, played by clarinets. This kind of like -- as you can feel that later, it's going to be big, waves, or big terrible thing happen. But in the beginning it's very -- kind of puzzled, and the color is quite dark. Even, I mean, also this music is very beautiful. And then comes the string. You know something is going to happen. And then...
SCHRODER: Go back to where I understand you took your first piano lesson at age 3. Right? Do you remember what you played in that first lesson at age 3?
LANG: I was 4. I think the first -- maybe first piece I ever played is this one. Mozart.
SCHRODER: Did you play that well?
LANG: Yes, I think so.
SCHRODER (voice-over): This was Lang Lang's very first public performance at the age of 5, in his hometown of Shang Yang, China. His biggest challenge was reaching the foot pedals. A year later, on to a bigger venue, the Shang Yang Convention Center in a very young performer's competition. Six-year-old Lang Lang took home first prize.
By age 11, he was ready for the international competition. This one in Germany. More gold medals. Soon after, off to America and one of the world's great conservatories, the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, and an 18-year-old debut at Carnegie Hall, which the "New York Times" music critic called "brilliant."
So where can Lang Lang go from here on the eve of his 20th birthday? Can he get any better?
JEPSON: I will be curious to hear Lang Lang 10, 20, even 30 years from now, because classical music is one of the few arenas around where age is an asset. Life's experience will stretch him and give him more to draw on.
LANG: You can tell that's a love song. That you are in my heart.
SCHRODER (on camera): Have you ever felt that way before?
LANG: I mean, you mean this piece?
SCHRODER: Have you ever felt that way before?
LANG: Not yet.
SCHRODER: You were featured in "Teen People Magazine." There was 20 teens who will change the world. And here you are among 20 teens who will change the world. Very different image from Pink.
LANG: Yes, completely. She's a pop singer, and this is classical music, and -- but there is always a connection, this is music, and overall.
SCHRODER: If you had an audience of young people who were fans of Pink, and you wanted to bring them over to classical music, what would you play for them?
LANG: I think I will play the "Stars and Stripes Forever," because it's really a cool piece and everybody loves it.
SCHRODER (voice-over): One final question for Lang Lang about his role model, Tiger Woods. Lang Lang says he loves the fact that Tiger wins so consistently.
(on camera): We know when Tiger Woods wins the game, he gets to the last hole and if he's there in fewer strokes than anyone else, he wins. How do you know when you win the game?
LANG: It's not like, for example, it's not like you beat all the others. And they say: Oh, you are so good.
The thing that you win is that the audience completely love you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Lang Lang tells us that as a child he practiced seven hours a day. But at least some of his talent is genetic. We have proof. When we come back on this Father's Day, Lang Lang and his dad.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: In case you're just joining us, we just introduced you to the great young classical pianist from China, Lang Lang. Now we're not saying that having a talented dad guarantees talented offspring, but in Lang Lang's case it clearly didn't hurt.
He grew up with the sounds of his father playing 1,000-year old Chinese string instrument. And on this Father's Day, they're treating us to a father-son duet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANG LANG'S FATHER (through translator): This instrument, it's called an erhu, which is like a Chinese violin. So now we're going to perform a piece by -- this is Chinese traditional folk music, and it's called "Competing Horses."
(MUSIC)
LANG: A cool piece, huh?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Very cool. Very, very cool.
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